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Methods of performance appraisal

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I. Contents of getting methods of performance appraisal


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Employee appraisal methods are a tricky and complex aspect of HR (Human Resources) and
business management. Many methods can be used, but with the ever changing nature of work,
and with significant differences between the Baby Boomer generation and Gen Y / Z, few
methods work well.
Some experts argue the Employee Performance Review should be abolished altogether.
In this article, well outline four methods that can be considered templates to which the employer
can refine for maximum fairness and accuracy.
Also consider doing performance appraisals that float up the chain of command as well as down.
This means that employees and junior managers get the opportunity to evaluate their bosses as
much as the bosses evaluate them.
Evaluating the Evaluation
Keeping in mind people are a companys greatest asset and resource, the purpose of doing an
evaluation at all is to 1) provide reliable information to employers as to the performance of
employees and 2) give employees an insight as to how they are perceived in the company. The
nature of the scales, measures, and variables are the basis of the different methods.
The Unstructured Format

The unstructured format is a common method where evaluators use an essay or short answer to
grade employees. The benefit here is that any and all variables are used, from the most
quantitative to the most informal. This is similar to the essay format, where appraisals are done
through a free form writing of an essay which tries to capture all aspects of employee
performance.
Ultimately, all unstructured appraisals are meant to be open ended and all encompassing.
The Ranking System
The ranking system is a more structured approach, where specific performance variables are laid
out. A ranking system of any kind must have explicit variables that employers can refer to.
Examples of this might include revenue generated, overtime hours, ability to work with a group
or overall attitude.
The purpose here is to provide a quantitative score in areas that are not necessary quantitative,
such as general attitude. The purpose is to show which employees are performing well relative
to a set of variables that an employer finds the most important.
The 360 Approach
The 360 Approach appraisal system is not just for employers, but is used by and for all
employees and managers of a firm. Most appraisal methods are designed using variables that
employers find significant, such as total revenue generated.
The 360 approach uses standards that other employees might find important.
In this case, appraisal comes from the overall function of the department, such as sales, rather
than just what a boss might find useful. Employees are considered as part of a structure that
functions only if all employees are on the same page and work together well.
The Mixed Standard Method
The mixed standard deals with complex variables. This is because variables used in employee
performance run the gamut from those which can be expressed solely by numbers and those that
are more abstractsuch as attitudebut cannot easily be translated into quantitative measures.
While some employers might only care about cash generated, others might want a tightly
structured office that requires many variables of different types. This is the domain of the mixed

standard. It uses some open ended techniques, but also uses quantitative ranking standards in a
mix that is useful to employers who want a smoothly running office.
The Mixed Standard isnt recommended for employees who regularly telecommute. Instead, they
should be measured mostly on objective outputs, such as number and type of projects completed
or expert evaluations of project quality.
What will work for a specific firm depends on what the owners or managers find important.
Certain high tech firms will be concerned more with precision work than attitudinal measures.
In this case, a more formal and structured format will be required.
In legal firms, for example, things like dealing with clients will be important, and therefore more
attitudinal issues will be stressed. The environment itself will dictate what variables are
important and which can be largely ignored.

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III. Performance appraisal methods

1. Essay Method
In this method the rater writes down the employee
description in detail within a number of broad categories
like, overall impression of performance, promoteability
of employee, existing capabilities and qualifications of
performing jobs, strengths and weaknesses and training
needs of the employee. Advantage It is extremely
useful in filing information gaps about the employees
that often occur in a better-structured checklist.
Disadvantages It its highly dependent upon the writing
skills of rater and most of them are not good writers.
They may get confused success depends on the memory
power of raters.

2. Behaviorally Anchored Rating Scales

statements of effective and ineffective behaviors


determine the points. They are said to be
behaviorally anchored. The rater is supposed to
say, which behavior describes the employee
performance. Advantages helps overcome rating
errors. Disadvantages Suffers from distortions
inherent in most rating techniques.

3. Rating Scale
Rating scales consists of several numerical scales
representing job related performance criterions such as
dependability, initiative, output, attendance, attitude etc.
Each scales ranges from excellent to poor. The total
numerical scores are computed and final conclusions are
derived. Advantages Adaptability, easy to use, low cost,
every type of job can be evaluated, large number of
employees covered, no formal training required.
Disadvantages Raters biases

4. Checklist method
Under this method, checklist of statements of traits of
employee in the form of Yes or No based questions is
prepared. Here the rater only does the reporting or
checking and HR department does the actual evaluation.
Advantages economy, ease of administration, limited
training required, standardization. Disadvantages Raters
biases, use of improper weighs by HR, does not allow
rater to give relative ratings

5.Ranking Method
The ranking system requires the rater to rank his
subordinates on overall performance. This consists in
simply putting a man in a rank order. Under this method,
the ranking of an employee in a work group is done
against that of another employee. The relative position of
each employee is tested in terms of his numerical rank. It
may also be done by ranking a person on his job
performance against another member of the competitive
group.
Advantages of Ranking Method
Employees are ranked according to their
performance levels.
It is easier to rank the best and the worst
employee.
Limitations of Ranking Method
The whole man is compared with another
whole man in this method. In practice, it is very difficult
to compare individuals possessing various individual
traits.
This method speaks only of the position where an
employee stands in his group. It does not test anything
about how much better or how much worse an employee
is when compared to another employee.
When a large number of employees are working,
ranking of individuals become a difficult issue.
There is no systematic procedure for ranking
individuals in the organization. The ranking system does
not eliminate the possibility of snap judgements.

6. Critical Incidents Method

The approach is focused on certain critical behaviors of


employee that makes all the difference in the
performance. Supervisors as and when they occur record
such incidents. Advantages Evaluations are based on
actual job behaviors, ratings are supported by
descriptions, feedback is easy, reduces recency biases,
chances of subordinate improvement are high.
Disadvantages Negative incidents can be prioritized,
forgetting incidents, overly close supervision; feedback
may be too much and may appear to be punishment.

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